Deb ... I really like the concept of this thread. I am still more of a rose gardener than a gardener. Even tho' I have been trying to learn how to garden with other plants, most of them are still a mystery to me and it is still all trial and lots of error. I have far more questions than knowledge to share.
I live at the southern end of the Klamath Mountains, so I guess I fit in the Pacfic Northwest area, but I don't have the coastal influence in my mountain climate.
Last week, I found myself wondering again which plants I should be cutting back and which ones I should be leaving alone. I am so pleased you started this thread. I hope you don't mind my joining you and burying you with my questions.
When I bought my house in '04, I inherited 4 peonies and my initial research said to prune them down in fall. Three of them are 'Festiva Maxima' and the other has the same plant habit and bloom form, so I am guessing it is in the same class or group. They appear to be going dormant and haven't objected to that treatment. Should I be cutting them back ? or are they going dormant because I am growing them in a colder climate than your coastal climate ?
I also regularly cut back:
salvias,
rudbeckias
coreopsis
California poppies
lamb's ear
alliums
and I hack anything I hope won't come back next spring. They always do ... like my mahonia. I really do not like that plant. I think it should be called the "eternity plant" because I can't kill it. I try at every opportunity.
I am cleaning out the vinca and blackberries that have invaded under the dogwood tree, too.
I was wondering if I should give my wooly thyme a haircut and my snow in summer a trim. I do get a couple of sloppy wet snow storms at my elevation. Usually I wait until spring for that, but should I be doing that in fall ?
I didn't get to my santolinas after they bloomed. Should I give them a trim before winter ? I know they will get some snow damage. Would a trim reduce the amount of damage ?
Should I cut my butterfly bushes back. It's going to be a challenge to reach them, but I've never known when to go after them.
As for my heucheras. I need to move them because the are getting sun scorched where they are currently sited. I thought I would divide them and move them this fall instead of waiting until spring when it seems like I am too busy to get to them. What do you think ?
I know I left some things out, but that's enough for tonight ...
